Theodore w



(No Model.)

' T,., W. MORSE.

HARNESS AND BOX LOOP PRESS.

No. 275,843. Patented Apr. 17,1883.

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' ATENT Finest THEODORE W. MORSE, OF BELOIT, WISCONSIN, ASSIGNOR TO \VILLIAM HALL, OF SAME PLACE.

HARNESS AND BOX-LOOP PRESS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 275,843, dated April 17, 1883.

Application filed April 22, 1882. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, THEODORE W. Moasn, of Beloit, Bock county, Wisconsin, have invented a new and useful press with dies for the purpose of stamping harness-leather with a variety of new andornamental patterns, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to a press or device for stamping and pressing leather, and is espe- 1o cially designed for use in harness-making.

The invention consists in a press composed of a bed having upright lugs or ears arranged in pairs, each pair carrying an eccentric-lever, a plate beneath the eccentrics to receive the 1 direct pressure thereof, and a die beneath the bearing-plate, the bed or frame being provided with a cross-bar, to prevent longitudinal movement of the die, and two pairs of the lugs being provided with two or more sets of pivotholes, to permit the adjustment of the eccentrics to diiferent heights for different kinds of work.

The invention further consists in minor details and features presently explained.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 represents a perspective view of my improved press; Fig. 2, a top plan view, and Fig. 3 a side elevation of the same. 7

The object of my invention is to provide a simpledeviceforembossingorpressingleather,

which shall be capable of operatin g upon straps, box-loops, winkers of bridles, and like parts of harness, and which may be quickly and easily manipulatedwithout the aid of sepa- 5 rate tools or devices, such as wrenches, now commonly employed. Vith this object in view I provide a frame or bed, A, of metal, consisting of .a flat bottom plate, a, a raised crossbar, b, at one end, connecting the side plates or bars, 0, and a series of upright lugs or short standards, cl, arranged in pairs, each pair carrying a horizontal cross-pin, e, on which is mounted an eccentric-lever,f--that is to say, a. lever having an eccentric formed upon its 5 inner or pivotal end, as shown in Figs. 1 and 3. Any desired number of levers may be em-' ployed, and they will be placed sulfieiently close together to'insure a proper pressing of every portion of the part operated upon. The

width of the frame or the space between the lugs or uprights d of each pair is somewhat greater than that of the widest strap or boxloop upon which the device is intended to 0perate; and in order to produce a space ofjust the width required for the special work to be performed, a movable side plate, g, is placed in the frame, and set-screws h, passing through the side plate or bar, 0, serve to adjust the plate, as required, and also to give whatever pressure is required to finish the edges of the strap or part operated upon, as in other devices of this character.

B represents a bearing-plate placed immediately beneath the eeeentricsf, and forming a bearing-surface therefor, and O is the die which bears upon the strap or otherpart and imparts the desired finish or ornamentation thereto. The die is placed beneath the bearv ing-plate B, and may extend the entire length of the frame or only a portion of such dis- 7o tance, according to the work to be done. The lower face of the die is figured to produce the required ornamentation or finish.

It will be seen that if a strap or other portion of a set of harness be placed in the frame A, and the die 0 and plate B be then placed in position upon the strap and beneath the eccentricsf, the rotation of the eccentrics through the depression of leversf will cause the die to be forced down upon the leather with great pressure, leaving the desired imprint thereon; but it will also be observed that unless means he provided for preventing such occurrence the movement of the eccentrics will tend to move the die longitudinally as well as downward, which movement would be liable to impair the quality of the work performed. To prevent such longitudinal movement is the purpose of the cross-bar b, which is sufliciently elevated to permit the strap or part to pass 0 freely beneath it, but serves as a bearing or abutment against which the end of plate B rests, and by which it is prevented from moving endwise.

In order toadapt the device for operating 5 upon box-loops and upon winkers or other projecting parts, the side bar or plate, 0, is cut away between the first and second uprights or lugs 01 at the forward side of the frame, so

erally from the frame and pass between them,

as indicated in Fig. 2, and the first and second that the winker or other part may project iat- [0O pairs of lugs or standards are made of greater height than the others and provided with two or more sets of pivot-pin holes, '5, so that the pins 6 maybe withdrawn from one set of holes and placed in another, accordingto the height or thickness of the article to be operated upon, box-loops and similar parts being quite high, and accordingly requiring the pivots and eccentrics to be set correspondingly high. When a short die is used, the bearing-plate B may still extend the whole length of the frame and abut against the crossbar I); or the die may be shouldered and made to bear against and be guided by the lugs or uprights cl.

The device being thus constructed, a strap or like part may be run through the frame beneath the die and figured, embossed, or pressed by merely depressing the levers f, which overlap each other, and may be actuated simultaneously, or practically so, and without the aid of wrenches, keys, or other separate or detachable parts necessary to other devices of this class. If a winker, a box-loop, or similar part is to be operated upon, the pins 0 of the first two eccentrics are withdrawn and the eccentrics placed at the required height, the manner of operating remaining the same as before. When the loop or winker is in place, a plate or side piece, j, may be placed in the frame A to support the side of the loop, strap,

or other part.

I am aware that a press or device for finish-. ing and embossing straps and other parts of harness has been patented in which an adjustable side plate was used, together with set-screws for adjusting the same and giving the necessary pressure thereto; and I am likewise aware that in such a device the die has been forced down by means of screws. -My plan is highly advantageous over that involving the use of screws, in that it enables the device to be operated far more quickly, and permits the operator to bring the pressure upon the article from end to end at practically the same instant, thus avoiding any tendency to crowd the leather along before the die by a pressure beginning at one point and followin g at other points snccessivel y. It also avoids the use of any detachable part which is liable to be lost or mislaid, thereby rendering the machine useless for the time.v

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is- 1. The herein-described press, consisting of frame A, having cross-bar b and lugs or up rights (I, eccentric-levers f, plate B, and die 0, all combined and operating substantially as shown and explained.

2. In a press substantially such as shown, the combination of a frame provided with uprights having two or more holes at different heights, a lever or levers mounted in said uprights, and a removable pin for each lever, adapted to be withdrawn from one hole and placed in another to vary the elevation of the lever.

3. The combination, substantially as herein set forth, of frame A, leversf, plate B, die 0, plate 9, and set-screws h, all arranged and operating as explained.

THEODORE W. MORSE.

Witnesses:

J NO. KNIFFIN, J. B. Dow. 

